The size and/or density of aquatic feed particles may vary depending on the fish to be fed the feed particles. For example, larger fish may consume feed particles having larger diameters than smaller fish. The location of the aquatic feed particles within the aquatic habitat of the fish may also impact the type of fish targeted by the feed particles. Bottom-feeding fish, for instance, may consume aquatic feed particles that sink to the bottom of the water, while surface feeders may consume feed particles floating at or near the surface of the water. As a result, aquatic feed particles of diverse size and density may be required to feed fish having different feeding styles and capabilities.
Methods of producing aquatic feed particles may involve creating an aquatic feed mixture and extruding the mixture through an extruder die. Preexisting methods of aquatic feed particle extrusion produce aquatic feed particles having only a single, uniform particle density, such that all aquatic feed particles produced in an extrusion process yield aquatic feed particles adapted either to float or to sink. To produce aquatic feed products comprised of aquatic feed particles having multiple densities, thus targeting multiple types of fish, the feed particles of multiple extrusion operations must be combined. Depending on the variety of fish targeted by a single aquatic feed product, many extrusion operations may be required. The multiplicity of extrusion processes, and the steps required to combine the differently-configured feed particles produced from such processes may be cumbersome and inefficient, and may necessitate specialized machinery simply to facilitate the required feed particle combination.